


Coffee Shop

by nicostolemybones (fatherlords)



Series: AUctober 2019 [18]
Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan
Genre: First Meeting, M/M, coffee shop AU, queer label, solangelo, very not straight - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-28
Updated: 2019-11-28
Packaged: 2021-02-18 07:30:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,158
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21590782
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fatherlords/pseuds/nicostolemybones
Summary: Nico goes into a coffee shop to escape the rain, panics, and meets a strangerI do not give permission for my work to appear on any apps nor do I consent to my work being reposted anywhere. If you see my work outside of my tumblr or outside of any blogs/accounts I mention in my fics, please report/contact them or inform me. If you report them, do not report as if it were your own work.My tumblr is @nicohasahappymeal
Relationships: Nico di Angelo/Will Solace
Series: AUctober 2019 [18]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1550413
Kudos: 56





	Coffee Shop

Coffee shops were Nico’s least favourite place to be. They were loud, crowded, and the smell of food and coffee turned his stomach. However, he’d missed the last bus, and it was pouring with rain, and his aviator’s jacket, as warm as it was, didn’t have a hood, and the rain was stinging his eyes. So he found himself sipping a coffee he didn’t like, sitting in the corner of the coffee shop, trying not to scream out loud. It was too loud and too crowded, a triggering situation to be in, and Nico thought about braving the rain again. He’d taken his jacket off because the sheepskin parts were far too wet, but at this point, he just needed to be anywhere but here.

And then a stranger was sitting opposite him.

“Hey, I’m sorry to bother you, I didn’t have anywhere else to sit,” he said. Nico froze, staring blankly at the table. He just wanted the stranger to go away, to be left alone, because right now, he was just trying to breathe normally, his chest feeling tighter and tighter. He almost didn’t notice the stranger sliding over a tangle. Nico immediately picked it up, pulling and twisting it, trying to focus on the motion of his hands and the sensations of the tangle on his fingers rather than the overwhelming cacophony. Which is why he almost didn’t notice when the stranger slid over a pair of headphones. Nico didn’t think twice before putting them on- even if it would have been music, one set of loud sound was better than overlapping clashing sounds from different directions. But there was no sounds in the headphones. It was silence, and it was bliss. Nico let out a deep, shaky breath and closed his eyes, absorbing himself in the nothingness and the tangle until the pain in his chest eased and the sheen of sweat was drying uncomfortably. He finally opened his eyes, and the stranger was still sat there, looking into his coffee. He smiled when Nico looked at him, but he didn’t make eye contact. Nico appreciated that- he didn’t think he could handle something so intense right now.

“Thank you,” Nico said quietly, and the stranger turned to look more in Nico’s general direction.

“It’s no problem, I understand how overwhelming this place can be, I just wanted to help. Are you going to be okay?”

“Yeah… yeah, I am,” Nico replied, and the stranger beamed warmly. Nico initiated the first eye contact, and his eyes were so so blue and pretty. Nico looked away with a coy smile, a little overwhelmed but in the best kind of way. He didn’t expect he’d see the stranger again, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t enjoy the warm fuzzy feeling he felt in his chest. After so much hurt feeling like this for Percy, Nico didn’t take the feeling for granted anymore. Who he was was okay, and who he liked was okay. The stranger was a pretty boy, kind too, and Nico didn’t want his heart to stop fluttering in his presence. He felt his cheeks heat up, and he revelled in the youthful crush he had on him.

“You uh… you seem to have cheered up a little,” the stranger said, and Nico’s heart gave a tight squeeze, nerves welling up in his stomach. 

Nico’s mind screamed danger, so he had to take a moment to assess the stranger. His body language was open, honest, non-threatening. His smile seemed genuine and kind- he was making no advances and he wasn’t trapping Nico in the corner- he seemed safe. But was it safe to call him pretty without being called a slur or without being left for dead in an alleyway? The stranger didn’t seem to be able to sit in a chair correctly, cuffed jeans, middle finger ring, and a t-shirt in a pink, purple, blue gradient with an open button-down flannel over the top. So potentially, the stranger may have been employing queer coding. Not necessarily- of course Nico was aware that queer coded dress wasn’t always intentional, but the fact that there was a chance the stranger was intentionally trying to indicate he wasn’t straight gave Nico a feeling of safety- this stranger was likely to be like him, therefore less likely to be unsafe. “It’s not every day a pretty stranger saves me from a sensory nightmare,” Nico said with a small smile, anticipating the disgust still. Instead, the stranger giggled and blushed pink to his ears, doing finger guns back at Nico. 

“Eeeyyy, fellow queer! If you’re okay with that word, of course.”

“I am,” Nico replied, relieved that the boy was, in fact, purposely trying to signal his queerness, “you look very bi.”

“Bi and ready to die,” the stranger laughed, “that’s the look I was going for. I would wear a pride pin but then people who don’t know about queer coding would know, and that means potentially homophobic people would know. I’m trying not to be a target whilst trying to signal my queerness to fellow queers and allies.”

“Smart,” Nico replied, blushing more, because the stranger was very not straight. 

“So, what brings you to this place at this time of the evening?”

“Missed the last bus,” Nico replied, “I’ve no idea how I’m getting home, I don’t have enough money for a cab and the train doesn’t stop close enough to where I live for me to avoid an hour walk.”

“If it’s money you need I can give you some to pay for a cab.”

“I can’t take your money,” Nico insisted, “I’ll just wander around town until sunrise, find a McDonald’s to sit in.”

“Then I’ll drive you home,” the stranger said, “I’ll let you take pictures of my number plate and a selfie with me to send to your mates, you know, for safety.”

“Thank you,” Nico sighed in relief- this stranger was trustworthy. 

“I’m Will, by the way,” the stranger introduced, and Nico felt himself blushing puce.

“Nico di Angelo. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

“Can I give you my number? Maybe if you ever find yourself ducking into a place like this, I can buy you a coffee sometime. Or if you ever need a lift. Or, you know, just a friend. But if you’d like to go out on a date or something I certainly wouldn’t be against that…” 

“I’d like that,” Nico replied, not even trying to hide his bashfulness, “but I’ll be paying for any dates.”

“I’ll still pay my share,” Will replied, “do you wanna get out of here and get home before it gets too dark and too loud?”

“Yes, thank you very much. And if the storm gets too rough, I’m not letting you drive home, you can sleep on my couch. No arguments, it’s the least I can do. Just don’t murder me in my sleep.” Will laughed quietly and nodded gratefully.


End file.
